Experimental and Numerical Assessment of Fibre Bridging Toughening Effects on the Compressive Behaviour of Delaminated Composite Plates
Increasing the Mode I inter-laminar fracture toughness of composite laminates can contribute to slowing down delamination growth phenomena, which can be considered one of the most critical damage mechanisms in composite structures. Actually, the Mode I interlaminar fracture toughness (<i>G<...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2020-03-01
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| Series: | Polymers |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/12/3/554 |
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| author | Aniello Riccio Angela Russo Andrea Sellitto Cinzia Toscano Davide Alfano Mauro Zarrelli |
| author_facet | Aniello Riccio Angela Russo Andrea Sellitto Cinzia Toscano Davide Alfano Mauro Zarrelli |
| author_sort | Aniello Riccio |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Increasing the Mode I inter-laminar fracture toughness of composite laminates can contribute to slowing down delamination growth phenomena, which can be considered one of the most critical damage mechanisms in composite structures. Actually, the Mode I interlaminar fracture toughness (<i>G<sub>Ic</sub></i>) in fibre-reinforced composite materials has been found to considerably increase with the crack length when the fibre bridging phenomenon takes place. Hence, in this paper, the fibre bridging phenomenon has been considered as a natural toughening mechanism able to replace embedded metallic or composite reinforcements, currently used to increase tolerance to inter-laminar damage. An experimental/numerical study on the influence of delamination growth on the compressive behaviour of fibre-reinforced composites characterised by high sensitivity to the fibre bridging phenomenon has been performed. Coupons, made of material systems characterised by a variable toughness related to a high sensitivity to the fibre bridging phenomenon and containing artificial through-the-width delaminations, were subjected to a compressive mechanical test and compared to coupons made of standard material system with constant toughness. Out-of-plane displacements and strains were monitored during the compression test by means of strain gauges and digital image correlation to assess the influence of fibre bridging on delamination buckling, delamination growth and on the global buckling of the specimens, including buckling shape changes. Experimental data were combined with a numerical study, performed by means of a virtual crack closure technique based procedure, named SMart Time XB − Fibre Bridging (SMXB-FB), able to mimic the crack bridging effect on the toughness properties of the material system. The combination of numerical results and experimental data has allowed the deformations and the buckling shape changes to be correlated to the onset and evolution of damage and, hence, contributes to improving the knowledge on the interaction of the failure mechanisms in the investigated composite specimens. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T21:52:24Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-dc45802de89b41c082e3c587fd9ad42f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4360 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T21:52:24Z |
| publishDate | 2020-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Polymers |
| spelling | doaj.art-dc45802de89b41c082e3c587fd9ad42f2022-12-22T03:15:27ZengMDPI AGPolymers2073-43602020-03-0112355410.3390/polym12030554polym12030554Experimental and Numerical Assessment of Fibre Bridging Toughening Effects on the Compressive Behaviour of Delaminated Composite PlatesAniello Riccio0Angela Russo1Andrea Sellitto2Cinzia Toscano3Davide Alfano4Mauro Zarrelli5Department of Engineering, University of Campania “L. Vanvitelli”-via Roma, 81031 Aversa, ItalyDepartment of Engineering, University of Campania “L. Vanvitelli”-via Roma, 81031 Aversa, ItalyDepartment of Engineering, University of Campania “L. Vanvitelli”-via Roma, 81031 Aversa, ItalyCIRA Italian Aerospace Research Centre, Via Maiorise s/n, 81043 Capua, ItalyCIRA Italian Aerospace Research Centre, Via Maiorise s/n, 81043 Capua, ItalyInstitute of Polymers, Composites and Biomaterials, CNR–Research National Council of Italy, Granatello 80055 Portici, Naples, ItalyIncreasing the Mode I inter-laminar fracture toughness of composite laminates can contribute to slowing down delamination growth phenomena, which can be considered one of the most critical damage mechanisms in composite structures. Actually, the Mode I interlaminar fracture toughness (<i>G<sub>Ic</sub></i>) in fibre-reinforced composite materials has been found to considerably increase with the crack length when the fibre bridging phenomenon takes place. Hence, in this paper, the fibre bridging phenomenon has been considered as a natural toughening mechanism able to replace embedded metallic or composite reinforcements, currently used to increase tolerance to inter-laminar damage. An experimental/numerical study on the influence of delamination growth on the compressive behaviour of fibre-reinforced composites characterised by high sensitivity to the fibre bridging phenomenon has been performed. Coupons, made of material systems characterised by a variable toughness related to a high sensitivity to the fibre bridging phenomenon and containing artificial through-the-width delaminations, were subjected to a compressive mechanical test and compared to coupons made of standard material system with constant toughness. Out-of-plane displacements and strains were monitored during the compression test by means of strain gauges and digital image correlation to assess the influence of fibre bridging on delamination buckling, delamination growth and on the global buckling of the specimens, including buckling shape changes. Experimental data were combined with a numerical study, performed by means of a virtual crack closure technique based procedure, named SMart Time XB − Fibre Bridging (SMXB-FB), able to mimic the crack bridging effect on the toughness properties of the material system. The combination of numerical results and experimental data has allowed the deformations and the buckling shape changes to be correlated to the onset and evolution of damage and, hence, contributes to improving the knowledge on the interaction of the failure mechanisms in the investigated composite specimens.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/12/3/554delaminationfibre bridgingcrack propagationsnap-through bucklingcompressive tests |
| spellingShingle | Aniello Riccio Angela Russo Andrea Sellitto Cinzia Toscano Davide Alfano Mauro Zarrelli Experimental and Numerical Assessment of Fibre Bridging Toughening Effects on the Compressive Behaviour of Delaminated Composite Plates Polymers delamination fibre bridging crack propagation snap-through buckling compressive tests |
| title | Experimental and Numerical Assessment of Fibre Bridging Toughening Effects on the Compressive Behaviour of Delaminated Composite Plates |
| title_full | Experimental and Numerical Assessment of Fibre Bridging Toughening Effects on the Compressive Behaviour of Delaminated Composite Plates |
| title_fullStr | Experimental and Numerical Assessment of Fibre Bridging Toughening Effects on the Compressive Behaviour of Delaminated Composite Plates |
| title_full_unstemmed | Experimental and Numerical Assessment of Fibre Bridging Toughening Effects on the Compressive Behaviour of Delaminated Composite Plates |
| title_short | Experimental and Numerical Assessment of Fibre Bridging Toughening Effects on the Compressive Behaviour of Delaminated Composite Plates |
| title_sort | experimental and numerical assessment of fibre bridging toughening effects on the compressive behaviour of delaminated composite plates |
| topic | delamination fibre bridging crack propagation snap-through buckling compressive tests |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/12/3/554 |
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